cls1000

i was under the assumption before i bought it that honda/acura were decent cars. i've had prob. 15-20 cars and this thing just makes me laugh. headlights get moisture in them. seat slides forward when i hit the brakes. seat squeaks. buttons on the steering wheel squeak. handling is terrible. the turning radius is so large that, due to the construction going on in my neighborhhod there are roads i can't turn on because it doesn't turn sharp enough (that is EXTREMELY annoying) a/c works sometimes, sometimes it doesn't. it appears my oil leak, the more i look at it, is coming from the front main bearing, which after doing some research, seems to be a pretty common problem (but not as much as the oil trail my car leaves) and due to this leak my belt is covered in oil so it makes noises as well. power steering pump groans. best mileage i can get is 250 on a tank which works out to roughly 18.3 mpg for me. the interior materials are very hard and cheap feeling (this surprised me as i figured it would at least be as high of quality as say, a ford fusion inside) stereo reception isn't that great. i've had to replace virtually every bulb in my dash from being burned out. i just bought this car as a work beater/winter ride and i'm starting to wonde if it's going to be reliable enough to get me those 4 miles i drive to work every day. first honda product, and most likely my last. thank god the weather is starting to get nice out so i can get my 01 3 series out of the garage. (of course if it doesn't get stuck in the oil pool in my driveway)



on the upside, i do like driving it!


and that pretty much satisfies my desire to rant for the day, have a great one!

ugh.

cls1000

oh and don't get me started on the transmission whine and the fact that my skateboard i had when i was a kid had better brakes! (yes the tail on my skateboard worked better than the brakes on this car)

TS_eXpeed

First of all either:



1) You bought a used TSX, the original owner treated the car like a POS
2) You treat the car like a POS
3) You just have really bad luck/really pessimistic outlook




My TSX has none of these problems. You think is the turning radius is bad?? BS! Go drive one of the new Cadillac DTS's. It takes an eight lane highway to turn that thing around. My headlights have never had moisture in them; my seat never slides forward; buttons on my steering wheel don't squeak; my handling is great; I get over 30 mpg/usually at least 350 miles on a tank, I'll get over 450 if it's all highway; i've never had a problem with stereo reception; i don't think the interior materials are hard and cheap feeling, but if you thought so, nobody made you buy the car; I've never had to replace a single bulb; and you say you treat it as a beater?


Are you sure this is an Acura TSX you are driving???



They look like that with several other various colors. :/

DixonTSX

I still love my car despite everything. Yes, it's got its share of creaks and rattles, there's that whining sound when stepping on the gas at about 50mph that's also being discussed in another active topic, I've had the brake judders and steering wheel vibrations, had the window actuator on my driver door go out, the passenger side heated seat switch bulbs blow out, had the PRND lights blow out, had the centre console lights blow out, VSA switch light blow out, a bad battery, and various other little things here and there, and YES, its a hassle to have to go to the dealership all the time or to a mechanic and have them fixed.

But I still feel that this a solid car, it's fun to drive and sporty, yet civil enough that it gives off a professional aura. There's a lot of mods that you can do for this car, and the options for that are endless, I've had cops compliment my car, and all around I think it's very comfortable car to be in. I don't feel that the interior is cheap at all, but probably I'm biased because I'm coming to a TSX from a 1989 Toyota Corolla.

On wide open suburban roads, driving this car is so much fun, I don't condone speeding, but accelerating from a stop and putting the car through it's paces, its just an awesome feeling!

But then again, if you didn't like the car in the first place, we shouldn't have bought it right?

For sure later on, when I go to buy a second car, I'm definitely going to consider Acura as a whole again, especially since I'm really feeling the TL Type S, but maybe I just might jump ship to an Infiniti G37S Coupe.

I'd still have my TSX though, and I'd still take care of it as I do now.

Edit: Maybe you got a lemon!

cls1000

it's an 04 that i purchased used. it now has roughly 88k on it.
i drive the car extremely easy. i always keep the rpm's under 3k, because if i don't the mileage is even WORSE!
and the previous owner, if i had to guess, did take good care of the car. doesn't even have one door ding on the exterior or scratch on the interior. just alot of stone chips on the front end, which is something else as well since everyone says these cars have soft paint.

cls1000

yeah i'm pretty sure...wait let me think.....yeah.....pretty sure this is what i drive to work everyday.....

but thanks for clearing that up. somedays i think maybe, just maybe it looks like an impala?!

GTSX-05

iTrader: (1)

I agree, you baught a POS, my TSX has been running problem free since 2004, when it was originaly purchased... btw; those chrome door pillar's look like trash.

amadeus303

iTrader: (2)

Judging by the chrome appliques on the pillars of the windows, I'd say you bought a used 2004 from someone that modded their car... and then restored it back to "stock" before selling or trading it in back to the dealership. The fact is, the guy/gal that originally used the car probably didn't give a rat's ass about what they did with the car once they knew they were giving it up... and cosmetic blemishes (dents and dings) can be fixed in an hour or two, and look as good as new. I would've done more due dilligence and had a mechanic look at the vehicle before actually dropping the beans to pick it up...

While I and my family have had a history of a few Honda and Acura vehicles (our '96 Accord went over 200k miles with only routine maintenance), I make no qualms about saying that my next car will not be in the Honda/Acura lineup --- I have no brand loyalty. I find it really funny when people come on forums (not just this one) and bitch about the quality of their used car purchases when they only have themselves to blame. Buyer's remorse is a bitch --- next time, be more careful. My

GTSX-05

iTrader: (1)

Magnificently put

Simba91102

This is all we need to know. You've evidently managed to get one of the early TSX's that has suffered all of the various defects that seem to plague many 04's (only usually not all in the same car like yours). Too bad you're so disappointed in the car (not surprising though). I don't think your experience is really representative of Honda products (based on my own experience and what you'll find on message boards like this one), but it's certainly understandable if you don't purchase another one I guess. Oh, and don't let the door hit you on the way out.

lcrazyaznl

iTrader: (1)

Turn radius is bad due to the double wishbone suspension.

Your cruddy gas mileage is probably stop and go so you can't expect it a hybrid sense of miles.

I get 30mpg driving all highway from home to college 1 tank about 400 miles.

davemiamiacura

I have been involved with the acura line for a few years now. I owned 2 Acura products that have gone well over 100k Each and both cars are running and going strong still.
If the TSX that you have, actually has all these problems, I would bet that you didnt buy it new , and if you bought it used it was not CPO. I would do a bit of research to see if this in fact is a SALVAGE TITLE vehicle. It sounds almost as if (Electrical Problems alone ) that the car was previously flooded. All the shorting bulbs and issues , Oil Leaks are another thing, I have been in the Acura business for several years and have not ever heard of a common OIL leak. Some of the folks here are correct saying thngs happen but ALL THESE items tell me you bought someone elses problem, Even the POWER SEAT sliding forward does not sound right.
Next time Certified Pre-owned if your going the used route. Few extra bucks for certification is well worth it.
Dave
Acura Sales

LuvMyTSX

04s have had a few problems, it is well known and common. However, why don't you just get them fixed? The headlights have a recall/TSB out to apply clips so moisture doesn't get inside....if there is already moisture inside, they replace them for free. My seat slides a little bit too, but it's never bothered me. Many people have had the dealership fix that for them as well. As for the A/C, why not just get it looked at? All of the problems you mention are minor and repairable, so get it taken care of and then you can enjoy the car the way it's supposed to be. You can't expect to buy a used car, especially one with 88k on it, and expect it to be absolutely trouble-free, no matter what manufacturer made it.

cls1000

omg are you kidding me? do you not read online forums? prob. half the people on this site alone have had this problem, and i've found many many posts on other's about excessive oil consumption as well as the crank seal causing major oil leaks. i did do research before i got it and every problem i see on all the diff forums that are widely reported are all problems that i'm having as well. it's not like an acura is a premium car, and i don't expect it to be, but i never thought i would have all these issues with it. main reason i bought it, i wanted something that got better economy than my awd subaru did, and no such luck in that dept. either...no, my car was not modded. that's what i do for a living, and i think i would know lol....the 32% tint and the chrome pillars i did myself to try and brighten up the rather dull look of this car. i think they look like trash with out them, so to each his own. even the critics at all the major car magazines have commented on the boring looks of this car, so it's not just myself with that opinion. this thing needs a little style

jmathew34

it's an upgraded hond accord, what did you expect? if you are not happy with your car change it...

jmathew34

Also to answer the thread title I am honestly happy with my car,

I've modded it and I still get 27-29mpg when cruising..under boost I get about 14-18mpg.

SoCaliTrojan

I think when you were doing your car research before buying a car, you got the TSX confused with the reviews of other cars. I've been on 4 TSX forums for the last 2 years, and you are wrong about the TSX having all of those problems. In fact, I sometimes get bored of the forums since not alot of people seem to have problems and just ask the same thing over and over again (what is oil life, is an alignment necessary, etc.) Before I got the TSX, I was on 3 honda accord forums, and I can remember how active the forums were because of the problems people were having (I know there were a few that had accords from the 1980's).

That car is either a lemon, or it was abused like crazy. All modders know that a modded car is worth less. I keep all of my stock parts, so I can turn my car completely stock at a moment's notice. The previous owner of your car probably did that.

Or...you are attempting to be libel and don't really own a TSX. You stated that you have a 3 series...maybe you got your TSX confused with your BMW? ;-P

Remember, the 04 TSX was the very first model. It will have 1st-year problems. The previous owner should have taken care of it...unless he was like you and decided to get rid of it instead of having the problems fixed under warranty.

CiViCKiDD

I bought my 08 about 5 weeks ago and only have 1500 miles on it, no problems yet. Reason I bought this was because (1) it was the best bang for the buck, and (2) it was a Honda - hence reliable.

The problems you have (in the grand scheme of things) are relatively minor, and can be fixed in your free time...you bought the car used, if you wanted a "perfect" car you should've bought a new car. Just my 2 cents.

bhavin3623

my car doesnt have any of those problems

dj Dozhe

I have an 06 with ~24K miles, and it's perfect. Yes I think it's a good car; that's why I bought it. Reading you post SCREAMED "I have an 04 and I bought it used." In a first model year you're bound to have glitches. Some cars will have a lot, and some will have few, but you seem VERY lucky! Headlight condensation, sliding seats, burnt out bulbs, oil leaking, wow.

I find it amusing that you would suggest the tsx isn't a good car based solely on your own experience, and the experience of some other less than lucky first model year owners. If I had to take a guess, I would imagine that 95% of the people on this forum think that the TSX is a good car. That might even be a little conservative.

I'm sorry you had a bad experience, but generalizations should be left to people who put chrome accents on their window pillars. oh, wait....

Red@8

IS this thread for real? CLS1000 you come on the tsx forum, one wich has a membership of over 126k members and ask if anyone likes their car? Get serious!!?!?

You claim to have done all this research and viewed all these forums and have purchased multiple cars in the past yet your choice of a poorly maintained and (in your opinion) a poorly designed car does not reflect very positively on you.

A lot of the problems you talk about (headlights, seats squeaking/sliding,etc) have been very well documented so you should have known about these problems from before and are repaired for free by the dealer.

Some of your other complaints should have been noticed by you on a test drive. I am assuming you did one of those in addition to the "research" you did. I am of course referring to; "turning radius is so large", "handling is terrible", "interior materials are hard and cheap", "stereo reception isnt that great", and the best of all "the rather dull look of this car". Not sure how you missed all these things in your test drive and research.

You also claim to do something with cars for a living, add to that the 15-20 cars you have owned, so I am not telling you this but others on the forum so that they can learn. When you have massive oil leaks, a/c problems, power steering problems, and other various problems with the car. FIX THEM. Dont let them create "pools of oil" in your driveway for your other cars and then complain about that as well. I have noticed when something is broken and you dont fix it, it stays broken. But I dont do anything with cars for a living, and I havent owned nearly 15-20 cars.

CLS1000 after all your complaining about how terrible this car is you still claim that you like driving it!?!? I think this may solve your problems and perhaps make you happy once again.

http://www.ford.com/vehicles/vehicle...rd-fusion-2008

kjamsf

Yours? :shakehead
Everybody elses.

Next question

itsme27

Its funny that someone who has owned 15-20 cars throught out their short life time. Does not have the common sense to be more careful when purchasing a USED CAR.

You choose to come to a tsx forum and ask if anybody really likes their car? No we do not. We all hate it, this is why we are in an internet forum discussing the car we own. Because we hate it so damn much.

If you have so many problems with your car maybe you should change it, because you have absolutely no problem in boasting on the fact that you have a 3 series, and have had all this cars in your life time. Why waste your time in a forum and bitch about a car you do not like? Go get another one, and live in peace.

btw i love my car, if i did not i would have already done something about it.

TS_eXpeed

just making sure.....yea, its definitely a POS

Way to 'research'

TS_eXpeed

just making sure.....yea, its definitely a POS

Way to 'research'

drigo

i had an 04' with over 50,000 miles and now my 06' with just over 30,000...no problems with either one...
i do love my car thats why i still have it..you should just get rid of yours to solve all your problems...

TS_eXpeed

HI OFECR

I agree lol

Love mine, i have non of these problems.

cybereclipse

just like everyone else..
i love mine

acura_ak

I think the TSX is a great car and like everything about it. Honestly if you don't like the TSX, which sounds like you don't, then just sell it already.

hunterk1

With regard to the problems: you bought a Lemon, sell it and move on.

With regard to complaints about handling, looks, etc... why did you buy it in the first place?

Honda cars last forever unless they're abused, from your report it seems likely your TSX was. Don't believe that your car is representative of the brand. There are probably more million-mile Civics than any other make/model.

Finally, to answer your question: Yes, the TSX is an excellent car. It's not the best at everything but is a very good compromise. I'm sorry to hear yours is giving you so many problems.

jackspat2

I bought an 08 Altima with leather instead of a TSX. 2.5 4 cyl with CVT tranny, regular fuel and better gas mileage. Feels just as sporty.

zguy95135

I have an 04 and the only problem I've had is condensation in the headlights

JayRoam

do us all a favor and sell your car. you're obviously not happy with it. not that it's going to change your mind, but either you got one of the worst lemons ever, or it sounds like you took a problem from every thread on this site and lumped it all into one post.

jumpmanbsktbll

I have an 04 and I love it. I owned an 97 Acura CL before this with 15x,xxx miles on it and it gave me no problems what so ever. The TSX has around 50k on it and ive only had to replace the a/f sensor. Other than that, I dont mind the random rattles and such. Find me a car that wont do that at all, period. Its a car, they arent meant to be perfect, which is why there are CAR MECHANICS and CAR SHOPS to fix things that go on cars. Its common with every car. Get over it.

thunder04

iTrader: (1)

This is the first Acura/Honda I've ever owned, and I've have nothing but good experiences with it.

My '04 has almost 90k miles and it feels/drives pretty much the same as a loaner '08 from the dealership. I have no fluid leaks, no excess oil consumption, still get 32 MPG on the freeway and 22-23 MPG city (for a combined 26-28 MPG average per gas up). I don't have any of the items you listed as "problems" with my car.

I will agree, the car doesn't have the tightest turning radius...but it definitely isn't bad. I've never had trouble getting anywhere. Maybe you should think about how you drive? I'll also agree that radio reception isn't the best, but there are too many factors to solely blame the car on this one.

If you didn't buy CPO, then you took a gamble. Like others stated...you either obviously got a lemon or it's previous owner treated it poorly. As soon as I saw a picture of your car, and saw the chrome on the door where chrome isn't supposed to be (NEVER came that way stock)...it looks trashy so it was probably treated trashy as well.

I'm sure 90% of the members who own a TSX like their car...so that question was rather stupid.

nj2pa2nc

Extremely happy with my 06 6MT/wnav tsx, bought new 11/17/06. It now has almost 42,000 miles. I have previously owned mercedes, volvo, mitsubishi, nissan, mazda, hyundai, chevy, ford besides honda/acura so I am not brand loyal.

MMsTSX

He didn't buy a lemon.

To the OP:

You made the mistake of buying a car in it's first model/production year that
was never cared for by it's owners.

Some of your problems would have been fixed by the dealer, no cost, no
questions, if the car had been taken care of.
The lights for instance. It was a recall.

So this tells me that not only was the car never taken care of properly, it was
never even brought back to the dealer for servicing.


The '04 TSX has problems. All '04 TSX's have problems.
More so than any other year.
It's just the way it is. They made many mistakes in '04 and corrected them
as the years went on.

The '09 TSX is going to face a similar host of problems.
Most cars in their first model year and in their first year of production have
problems. I think you would know that with all the cars you've owned.
Never buy a car in it's first model/production year!
Give it at least a year or two for bugs to be worked out.


Oh, and I don't believe all you say either.
I seriously doubt you had to replace the LED bulbs in your dash.
I'm almost positive you're lying about that one. They're not just light
bulbs that burn out and need replacing. And you can't just switch them either.
So I call bull on that one.

A major oil leak too? And you still drive on it?
That car had some trouble to start with, being a first model year.
And you plus the previous owner(s) have just beat it into the ground.

Go buy a Ford.

rex.

datadr

Wow... If all of that is really wrong with the car, you definitely got a lemon.

I have to agree with what others have said... There are many of these things you would have found if you took the time to test drive the car - many of these issues are know problems with the first model year and would have been corrected under warranty.

The TSX is one of the most reliable cars out there according to Consumer Reports. And as far as the interior materials, the Acura interiors are one of the best out there - it's one of the major raves on AZine about the car.

Personally, I love this car. I've had my 08 for 3 months now and haven't owned a better car. Rock solid, a blast to drive... I loved this car from the first time I sat in it in the showroom when the 04 debuted. Even with the first year issues, it's a solid car.

Like others have said, the previous owner probably beat the crap out of it and didn't care for it at all. I also find it questionable that you have owned 15-20 cars in your 16 year driving history. If that's true, you are consuming one car ever year, which if that's true, doesn't look good for your abilities to care for a vehicle. Regardless, all of the issues you state are minor, with the exception of the constant oil hemorrhage - my guess is that there is something seriously wrong that needs to be addressed immediately.